Words Seem Out Of Place

" The image of the she wolf just came to my head, and when I least expected it I was howling and panting." — Shakira "You don't think for one note that she's trying to speak to any issue other than her libido, and she creates a world where not only is this acceptable, but it makes perfect sense." — Consequence of Sound "And for as sexy as Shakira  is—crucially, her music is sexy too—what really gives She Wolf  its bite is her inspired nuttiness." — Billboard "I know what I'm doing even when I'm wearing a pencil skirt." — Shakira ***** Werewolves have been on my mind a lot lately, or, even more so than usual. It is Halloween, after all. I recently revisited the movie  Silver Bullet —it's even better than I remembered!—followed immediately by a first-time watch of the total stinker  Bad Moon . To cleanse myself of that film's lingering disappointment, I started ruminating (as I do often) about anothe...

A sporadic series celebrating old music that's new to me. Very few things in life can compare to that powerful jolt of electricity that shoots through your body and straight to your heart and soul when discovering an old band whose sound is exactly everything you've ever wanted out of music. I had that experience with Transvision Vamp recently. I'm still on a high, several days after first hearing them via their 1989 UK hit, "Baby I Don't Care." The British alternative rock band was active from 1986–1991, but during that short career they left behind some truly extraordinary music. Their sound is at once of their era and also utterly transcendent of it. Transvision Vamp's sound and style may fit squarely into the post-punk/power-pop/shoe-gaze style so prevalent in the 1980s, but it's music was built to last. Ringing guitars, a pounding rhythm section, and an absolute spitfire lead singer who sings every song as if it's her last night ...

A sporadic series celebrating old music that's new to me. One of the great pleasures in life is discovering an old movie, book, or musical act that had previously escaped your eyes or ears and therefore was new to you. I had this experience recently with UK metal goddesses, Girlschool. I'd heard of Girlschool, but had no idea they've been recording and shredding in concert for over forty years now, or that they absolutely rocked . We're talking pedal to the metal, balls to the wall, hide small children, and turn it up to eleven rock. Girlschool's Spotify station has been a wonderland of sonic pleasure so far. The girls of Girlschool--and while the roster has changed over the years, the classic lineup is Kim McAullife, Enid Williams, Denise Dufort, and the late, great Kelly Johnson--are kicking my arse and I love it. Thin Lizzy is the closest parallel I can think of to describe their sound. The pummeling yet absurdly melodic riffs are like crack for my ce...

Linda, that girl looks just like Pat Benatar. I know. Wait, there are three girls here at Ridgemont who have cultivated the Pat Benatar look. I was just a kid when Fast Times at Ridgemont High opened in 1982. Still though, even at the tender young age of seven, I knew who Pat Benatar was, because a.) her music was all over the radio and even then I recognized the utter awesomeness of her vocal talent in songs like "Hit Me With Your Best Shot", and b.) some of the older girls around town were obviously cribbing their looks—clothes, hair, makeup, strut—from Benatar's own style. Benatar was ubiquitous. So, when I see or hear vintage-era Benatar now, I think of Fast Times , but mostly I remember that ubiquity—of both the performer and her legion of young imitators. I know it's not true, but when I recollect those years I swear every older girl looked like either Benatar, Juice Newton, or Joan Jett. It's easy to forget, years later, that...

This series looks back at the 1990s and its influence on the generation of people who came of age during the decade. Mazzy Star's "Blue Flower" has always sounded exactly like the early 1990s felt to me. Ah, back in the day. The halcyon years of modern rock, alternative rock, whatever you want to call it—those final, peak years, before it all drifted off into the ether, to be replaced in the public consciousness by Britney and the Back Street Boys. Many of us aging Gen Xers believe that it was the last, truly great era of rock music (Get off my lawn). Music played such an enormous part in our lives back then, in the way that it only can when you're a teenager. It seemed to soundtrack every waking moment. Hearing those '90s songs today floods my head with memories of friends , girlfriends , school,  work , play , dreams , anxieties, everything and everyone that influenced who I was and who I was growing up to be. Mazzy Star's sublime, dream-pop mast...

Our pasts are littered with so many obsessions, the kind formed by the passion of youth, some of which stick around, many of which fade over time. Growing up in the Last Golden Age of Rock (i.e., the 1990s), many of my generation's obsessions revolved around music. Some have remained in our hearts forever after, while others drift away. Even those that fade, though, still reside in our hearts—all it takes is hearing a song out of the blue one day, then all of those youthful feelings of loving devotion rush back to the forefront of our hearts and minds. This happened to me a few weeks ago when I heard "Dreams" and "Zombie" on the radio in a matter of days. Suddenly, I was remembering how that teenage version of myself once bought each of the Cranberries' '90s albums as they were released, played them to death, and, as my mother reminded me yesterday, even had a poster of the band on my bedroom wall. Dolores O'Riordan, who passed away over the...

This series looks back at the 1990s and its influence on the generation of people who came of age during the decade. Search any dorm room across campus, circa 1995, and you'd likely find a copy of Simon and Garfunkel's Greatest Hits . Many copies would've been acquired through BMG's or Columbia House's music clubs ( "12 Hot Hits for a Cool Penny" ). "Cecilia" was always a hallway jam favorite, especially in the girls' dorms, but "Bridge over Troubled Water" was deep , man. Sail on silver girl Sail on by Your time has come to shine All your dreams are on their way See how they shine Oh, if you need a friend I'm sailing right behind Like a bridge over troubled water I will ease your mind Like a bridge over troubled water I will ease your mind That image of "Silver Girl" was particularly evocative to me—of what, I wasn't quite sure, but it was all so lovely an...